Mirror, Mirror
by LemonSmoothie
Summary: Applejack, Bearer of the Element of Honesty, is asked personally by Princess Celestia to explore a hitherto unknown parallel universe. Alone.
1. Chapter 1

Mirror, Mirror

An original My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic fanfic by Lemonsmoothie

Disclaimer: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic belongs to Lauren Faust and Hasbro. No copyright infringement is intended. Original characters are mine.

Time: Takes place during the fifth season, sometime between "Make New Friends, But Keep Discord" and the season finale.

Friendship Rainbow Kingdom Castle is a mouthful, but it's to the point. I was being summoned there. Not by a vibrating Cutie Mark, thank goodness, but a message from Spike. My friend Princess Twilight Sparkle's secretary slash assistant slash little brother.

Seriously, the forces that be must have a sense of humor. Calling us to action when our butts vibrate?

I don't think I'd like living at the Friendship Rainbow Kingdom Castle. It's a bit drafty, and the branches of the Tree of Harmony tend to scrape the walls when it gets windy, and the whole thing is so grand. Not to mention it'd probably be a pain to keep clean. But it is a truly beautiful structure. And when the sun shines, the glass-like crystal walls make the most beautiful rainbows. They remind me of a simpler time, or the day I got my Cutie Mark.

I entered the castle's main entrance.

"Hi, Applejack," Twilight said. "We're meeting in the lounge."

Lounge? Huh. I expected the throne room, where we do most of our strategizing. I followed her to the lounge. My other friends – Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy were sitting on cushions around the room.

One of our reigning monarchs, Princess Celestia, was sitting on one of the couches. Ah. I suppose Twilight didn't want to leave her without a place to sit. Though I would have gladly let her sit on my throne. That thing's as hard as a rock anyway.

I took my seat on the floor. Twilight seated herself on one of the cushions, and Spike leaned up against her.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," Princess Celestia began. "I hope I didn't worry you."

"So what are we doing today?" Rainbow Dash asked. Brash as ever.

"You recall the parallel world in which Sunset Shimmer now resides, and the other parallel world we have visited?" Princess Celestia asked.

"How can we forget?" Rarity asked. "King Sombra was...a charmer in that world instead of..."

"Dressed like a villain from some sappy melodrama?" Pinkie asked. "Except he was missing a nice long mustache he could twirl. Don't you think King Sombra would have looked better with a mustache? Like Snoutly Whiplash's?"

Princess Celestia continued. "It seems a portal to yet another world has appeared in Equestria. Very close to Ponyville, in fact."

"Is it related to the appearance of the Castle?" Twilight asked.

"No," Princess Celestia said. "In fact, it appeared before the Tree of Harmony's chest was opened. I was reading some reports on it from some field agents, and then Tirek resurfaced, so the investigation was put aside."

"So you want us to look into this world?" I asked. Not exactly my cup of tea, but whatever world awaits beyond this portal thing can't possibly be weirder than King Sombra being polite, or Discord being some sort of superhero, or Derpy Hooves being intelligent?!

"No," the Princess shook her head. "As we learned from our adventures in King Sombra's Canterlot, the presence of ponies from our world can alter the forces that govern another world, so I feel we should err on the side of caution. Only one pony should enter that world, investigate, and report their findings. And I have somepony in mind."

Twilight. Of course.

"The circumstances of this portal's formation are unknown," Princess Celestia continued. "And I can safely say it is not a world I am familiar with. Further, something seems...off about it. The energy I can sense from it doesn't feel like anything I've ever encountered before. But I know you can do this...Applejack."

What?! She said my name? How...why...?

My throat went dry. "Me?" I asked.

"You bore the Element of Honesty," Princess Celestia began to explain. "That makes you able to see beyond the surface, a skill you're going to need for the journey ahead."

See beyond the surface? What was does that mean? I'm just an apple farmer. Twilight recognized my honesty, and Honesty is one of the Elements of Harmony, but...it's not like tellin' the truth is anything special. It's something everypony should do.

After all, ain't that what we're taught when we're foals?

And the Princess sent Twilight to that one other world. Well, I guess the first time, it was because _her_ crown was stolen.

Princess Celestia smiled at me, and it was so...expectant and gentle. How could I say no to that? It'd be like saying no to my own mother.

Except an equal and opposing force rose up in me. My honesty. "I can't say I'm not flattered by your faith, but I'm not suited for spyin' on some strange world or investigatin'! It's just not in my blood!" I protested, inwardly regretting my cowardice.

Twilight giggled. "You're a direct descendant of Northern Spy, the greatest spy there ever was!"

Rarity squealed. "I've read all the novels based on her exploits! Applejack, how could you not tell me you were related to her?!"

"Who the hay is Northern Spy?" I asked.

"Northern Spy was Granny Smith's grandma," Pinkie supplied. "I remember seeing her name when I was looking through the Apple family tree, trying to find that elusive link to the Pie family."

"I always thought she was too upfront with that name, though," Twilight said with a shrug.

"I guess honesty runs in the Apple family too," Fluttershy said quietly. As if she could speak any other way.

"Besides, Twilight would attract way too much attention," Rainbow Dash observed. "An alicorn can't exactly blend in."

And Twilight turned into a two legged creature with no wings, no horn, and was basically indistinguishable from everyone else in that other world. Right.

Rainbow continued. "No offense, Applejack, but you're kind of...easy to miss."

"Excuse me?" I retorted.

"What Rainbow Dash means is...who else could pull it off but you, Applejack?" Twilight added.

"Since Rainbow isn't exactly Miss Subtlety," I said. "I get it now!"

"Sad but true," quipped Rainbow. "It's hard to conceal this much awesome!"

"I don't think I'd be able to do it, either," Fluttershy said quietly. No one disagreed. Poor mare has enough trouble exploring _this_ universe.

"And while we love Pinkie Pie, she is easily distracted," Rarity explained.

"It's true," Pinkie said. "And spies get captured and tortured. I couldn't bear torture. I start crying if one of my hooves is ingrown!"

No one bothered to contradict Pinkie. You know, that she once willingly signed up to babysit the Cake babies for an afternoon. Talk about torture.

"However, if you truly do not want to do this," Rarity said. "We can't force you. If that's the case, I'd be happy to do it instead."

"NO!" Everyone except Princess Celestia chorused.

"Oh?" Rarity blinked. "Whyever not?"

"You get really carried away," Rainbow said.

"I do not," Rarity said emphatically.

"Wanting to rearrange Ponyville in your albeit beautiful image?" Spike piped up.

"I wasn't myself!" Rarity insisted.

Twilight added, "Refusing to let anyone look at your quote-unquote 'sparkly diamond.'"

"That doesn't count," Rarity said. "Discord tricked me. And almost all of us behaved..."

"Crashing the Young Fliers Competition?" Rainbow Dash chipped in.

Rarity shifted. "Um..."

"Rolling around in a pigsty and trying to change your personality just to impress some guy you never met?" I said.

A wince from Rarity.

"And don't forget the..." Pinkie chirped.

Rarity sighed. "You made your point. Honestly."

Fluttershy spoke, albeit softly. "And then there was..."

"I said, drop it!" Rarity snapped.

"I'll do it," I said. "I won't lie. I'm nervous, but orders are orders."

"Thank you, Applejack," The princess said in that cottony soft voice of hers. "Your friends will be with you in spirit. And if there is an emergency..." She opened a saddlebag and levitated two small and round pieces of glass onto the table. One she placed in front of me and one in front of Twilight. "Twilight's high amount of magic power might allow her thoughts to transcend the barrier between this world and whatever is on the other side of that portal. These Mystic Mirrors will act as a conduit. Applejack, if you are ever in a tight spot and need Twilight's guidance, you can simply stare directly into the mirror's surface, concentrate, and think of Twilight."

That made things less scary. Hate to admit it, but Twilight is a lot smarter than me.

What? No 'earth ponies are dumb' joke? I've heard them all anyway. Like an earth pony and a unicorn both fall off a cliff. Who lands first? Unicorn, since earth ponies have to stop and ask for directions.

...That doesn't even make sense. Don't unicorns know how to levitate stuff, so couldn't the unicorn simply slow his or her descent?

Never mind that.

Princess Celestia also levitated a coin purse in front of me. "I hope this will cover expenses. I will also compensate you for lost work time at the completion of your mission."

I looked in the purse. My eyes bulged. Wow. That was a lot of bits.

XXX

After telling Granny and Big Mac where I'd be and packing a saddlebag of supplies as well as the coin purse, I followed Princess Celestia to a meadow outside of Ponyville. We were alone. I know I should have asked her some questions, but...it's so hard to ask for help. I know I should, but it's so much easier said than done, you know?

Plus she's so...ethereal. It's hard to talk to her like any other pony.

"This is it," the Princess informed me.

I looked at the ground. There was a small pool of water. Too small to even call a pond. The water shimmered like liquid silver.

"This water?" I looked at it. My reflection stared back at me. I stuck my hoof in it. No wetness. No disturbance of the surface. "Oh. It only looks like water."

"Good luck to you," the Princess said. "I wish I could accompany you inside, but I must return to Canterlot."

"Don't trouble yourself on my account, Princess," I said. "I can handle going into a portal." The hard part is what comes _after_ the portal, I thought to myself.

I simply trotted back several yards and got a running start and jumped into the "water." My body felt cold all over. But that wasn't what made me scream.

I was surrounded by absolute blackness. Air whooshed past my ears. It was like diving off the highest diving board possible, with no idea if there's water in the pool. At night, under a cloudy sky with no moon or stars or any kind of light.

Oh, Applejack, you are a stupid one.

Well, I've lived a good life – wait.

I hit...something. It felt like the ground. Some dust even flew up into my nose, making me sneeze.

But shouldn't falling from such a height hurt? I felt...no different than when Big Mac and I used to jump from the barn loft into the hay piles.

I got up, grateful my bones hadn't shattered into a million pieces. My first instinct was to look upward.

No way. My eyes were playing tricks on me.

There was no light above me to indicate where the portal I jumped through had been. Just more total darkness.

There was absolutely no light around me. And if hurtling through inky blackness was scary, being still in it was worse. At least I had my fall and what I thought was my incoming doom to distract me.

All right, Applejack. Breathe deep. You can get through this. Twilight has wings and light magic that would have helped in this situation, but she's not here, and I ain't her, and nothing will change these facts.

I ran my hoof along my saddlebag. The latch was still closed, so it hadn't spilled open. I didn't fiddle with it. The magic mirror may have broken, and I didn't fancy getting a cut on top of being blind. I had some matches, but matches only burn for a short amount of time. And it was better to save them for if...when I get out of here. Especially since I had no way of getting back at the moment.

A few minutes of deep breaths, and I was calm again. Well, relatively speaking.

The area was completely silent. I didn't want to try yelling for help. Somepony might hear me and help, but there was the risk of a monster here. One that can see in the dark. Better to be careful.

I took a few steps forward, then listened. Nothing except my footsteps. I strained to hear, but still nothing. A few more steps...

Bonk! I walked right into what felt like a stone wall. Now I know how Rainbow Dash feels whenever one of her stunts goes wrong and she plants her muzzle in the ground.

I felt along the wall until my hoof trailed into thin air.

I have no way of knowing how long I spent in those dark tunnels. My eyes adjusted to the extremely low level of light...somewhat. I was able to move around without hitting the walls, at least. I kept an ear to the ground for any signs of life, but there were none. Eventually I felt confident enough that there were no pony-eatin' critters prowling around so I called out. There was no answer, only echoes.

And after what seemed like hours, I came to the conclusion that I was going to wander around in the dark until I died.

Wait. Could that be...?

Faint light! Finally! I picked up the pace. The light got brighter.

I walked out, into some brisk night air. The moon was shining in all its glory. And just ahead of me was what looked like the road that led to Sweet Apple Acres.

Glancing back, I realized I emerged from the mouth of some sort of cave. Except I don't remember a cave here. And I've gone down this road hundreds of times. So I continued down the road until I saw the gate to Sweet Apple Acres. It was locked, with a huge and heavy looking padlock. A sign above the lock read: _Under New Management._

Hmm. What could this mean?

Maybe the farm exists, but it's not run by the Apple family. Then what is the Apple family doing in this world, if not growing apples? That boggles the mind. Well as long as we're not farming tomaters. What? They're red, and they're fruit. Those tomater sellers are trying to muscle in on our produce niche!

Everything looked...just like my home. All the lights were off in the farmhouse. I thought about climbing over the gate and knocking on the door, but thought better of it. If the farm really was owned by someone else, I'd be trespassin' on their property. And technically, this wasn't my farm, even if it looked exactly like it. I can't just go traipsing about. Not to mention I was asked to be subtle. Getting arrested isn't subtle.

So I turned around and headed into Ponyville. Surely someone would be willing to talk to me. It was a crisp, beautiful night. The streets were quiet, as usual.

I strolled down the street. Everything indeed looked like the Ponyville I knew and loved.

Several ponies were looking at me, as if in horror. It was like they had seen a ghost.

Shoot. My cover can't already be blown.

"Applejack?" One of the ponies, an Earth Pony named Dance Macabre, approached. We had gone to school together and lost contact after that. I'd occasionally see her around town, but we hadn't exchanged words in a long time. Her coat was deep red in color, and her particularly puffy (Rarity would use the word _bouffant_ , but that just sounds pretentious) mane deeper red still with purple streaks. She was clad in some stretchy kind of dancing outfit, with two turquoise-colored bangles on her right back leg.

"Dance Macabre?" I asked. I decided to get right to the point. "Why is everyone giving me the ol' stinkeye?"

"Your friends didn't tell you?" She looked confused. "You're okay, right?"

"Of course. I feel fine!" I insisted.

"That's a relief. The whole town loves you. And Princess Twilight..." She trailed off.

"What about Twilight?" I asked.

Dance shook her head. "I don't really know. No pony does. Oh! I guess you should see Ribston Pippin. He can get in contact with your grandma and Big Mac. They'll be so happy to see you!"

Ribston Pippin is my uncle. He lives in Las Pegasus. Well, he did back home. In Equestria. My home Equestria. Whatever.

My head swam. I'm used to getting up early, but I usually am in bed early. The clock in the town square told me that it was close to midnight, way past my usual bedtime. Perhaps I was just overthinking it. I figured I better get some rest. I've learned the hard way that I tend to make messes when I'm sleepy. To this day, I'm grateful no one sued me over the outbreak of food poisoning I accidentally caused. "I'll see him in the morning."

"Good night, then," Dance said.

The town's hotel, the Dewdrop Inn, was just down the street, so I immediately trotted there. I opened the door and entered the lobby.

A single male pegasus pony was behind the counter. His coat was a glossy white. His mane and tail were golden yellow, and his eyes were dark blue. He wore a simple green vest that ended halfway down his body, and his Cutie Mark was visible. It was a purple crescent moon beside a puffy white cloud, with a single blue rose on the cloud. Weird, that. Who ever heard of a blue rose?

The pony turned to me and bowed. "Welcome to the Dewdrop Inn. I'm your host, Saturday Sky. How may I help you this fine evening?"

"I'd like a room."

He looked up at me. You know, because he bowed deeply. "Aren't you...Applejack?"

"I am," I said.

He looked like he was about to say something, but simply walked behind the counter. "Is it just you?"

"Yes," I answered.

"And how long will you be staying?"

"Just for the night, for now."

He checked a row of keys on the pegboard behind him. There were only a few missing. He selected a key. Behind him was a sign showing the nightly rate (four bits) and check-out times.

I reached into my saddlebag and drew out the coin purse Princess Celestia gave me. I counted out four bits and set them on the counter.

"Oh, don't trouble yourself," Saturday Sky said. "For you? It's on the house."

"That's mighty nice of you to offer," I said. "But I don't take charity." I shoved the bits forward.

"Neither do I," he replied, reaching out a hoof to stop the coins.

"You're taking the bits!" I said. "If I slept in your inn without paying my bill, I'd be like a common thief!"

"Well, how do you think I'd feel?"

"Like a normal pony? It's a simple rule of business," I answered. "Ponies stay in your inn, they pay the fee."

He shook his head. "I don't feel right charging you. After all you've done. You're one of the Elements of Harmony..."

"Yes," I said. "But that doesn't make me special or anything. So let me pay my bill. Because I'm tired and I want to go to bed!"

"How about if I bill you four imaginary bits?"

I hoofed my face. "Is that like an imaginary number? Cause the headache I'm getting? Not imaginary."

"All right, I'll take the money." Saturday Sky pushed the key forward. "Anything else I can do for you, Miss Applejack?"

"You don't have to call me Miss," I replied.

"Is there any significance to your name?" He asked. "Out of curiosity? I know the Apples tend to be named for cultivars of apple or an apple product, but to name you for an alcoholic beverage seems to be a bit mean spirited..."

Applejack is apple brandy, right. "It's what my parents were drunk off the night they conceived me," I answered, just before taking the key in my mouth.

Saturday looked at me blankly as he processed what I said and burst into laughter. He wiped tears from his eyes.

"So where is the room?" I asked, once he stopped laughing.

He gestured to a flight of wooden stairs. "It's on the third floor. Climb the two flights of stairs, take a left, and it's all the way down the hall. One of our best rooms. It's a corner room, too."

"I don't need anything fancy," I said.

"Oh, it's the off season," he said. "Have a good night, Miss Applejack."

And I distinctly told him not to call me miss! Stubborn chap. And if this is the off season, and this is a very small town, shouldn't he want all the fees possible? What was up with him trying to give me a free night?! My head was throbbing as I climbed the stairs and entered my room.

The hotel room was nice. I've never been to the Dewdrop Inn in my Ponyville, so I have nothing to compare it to. The room had a bathroom, plenty of towels, and a large single bed. There was a large plate-glass window that looked out on the town. There was also a small desk and chair pushed up against the wall. I set my bag on the chair. The room was well decorated, with pretty if generic landscapes in gilt frames on the walls, a very clean and plush gray carpet on the floor, and maroon curtains lining the window.

I pulled the covers on the bed aside and climbed in. The blankets and hay mattress were very soft. As I was getting comfortable, I heard some noises. I turned my head and saw they were coming from a vent in the floor. Must be somepony down below.

There were piano notes.

A husky female voice was singing: "My kingdom's on the line, but like the sun, just watch me shine, today." She stopped. "Drat. I dropped a line. I never drop lines. Maybe if we don't have the piano, I'll remember what I'm supposed to sing!"

"All right," Another female voice, this one soft and thin as a string spoke. "Don't pressure yourself."

"Easy for you to say!" The singer was obviously irritated. "Why do we have to do _Sun Princess_ anyway?! Couldn't we do something...simpler?!"

"But I learned all the songs. I can't learn another libretto!" The second voice whined.

"Why not?!"

A pause, then the second voice said, "I'm too lazy to learn another one."

"Forget it. We'll try again later," the husky voice said, somewhat sadly.

 _Sun Princess_? Oh, so they were rehearsing the opera. How do I know anything about opera? You see, a little bit before we met Twilight, Rarity dragged me, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy to that stupid opera. _Sun Princess_. It was all about Princess Celestia. Four of the most miserable hours of my life. Operas are long and boring, and you can't understand a word. Rainbow agreed with me. She slept through at least a quarter of the whole thing. I spent all four hours visualizing what I'd do to Rarity for subjecting me to that.

Weird place to rehearse an opera. But I felt my consciousness slipping and I heard no more.

I opened my eyes to daylight, after a deep, dreamless sleep. I yawned and stretched my front legs.

The hotel bathroom was well stocked. The mane shampoo was nicely scented, though a bit fancier than the one I use at home. The bath I took was relaxing. So much so that the task in front of me seemed less daunting than it had last night. After putting the towels in the hamper, I checked my saddlebag. The magic mirror Princess Celestia gave me hadn't broken. I took it out of the bag and set it on the desk. Now I suppose was as good a time as any to see if it worked.

After staring into the mirror for a few minutes, the surface seemed to ripple like water and then it stopped. And Twilight's face was looking back at me.

"Applejack!" Twilight said. "How are things?"

"Weird," I said. "This world is...strange. I don't belong here."

"Like what?"

"It looks just like our Ponyville here. I spent most of last night trying to find my way out of this dark cave, and I came out. There was the road that ran between Sweet Apple Acres and Ponyville. I checked out the farm, but there was no one around to talk to. So I went to Ponyville and decided to get some rest."

"So everything looks the same? It might be a junction world."

"Junction world?" I asked. "What's that?"

"There's this theory that there is a world that has arisen from every consequence of every decision ever. Like...Discord's invitation to the Grand Galloping Gala got lost in the mail. And he thought he hadn't been invited, which made him take out his anger on Fluttershy's friend Tree Hugger. If there was a world where his invitation didn't come late. Or maybe if it had never come at all. Think of how things could happen differently!"

I laughed softly. "But that would mean millions upon millions of worlds! And if they were all as big as this one, that'd be an awful lot of...stuff. I don't know much about the creation of life and stuff, but it doesn't just come out of thin air. There'd be worlds springing up every single second too!"

"True, but there are a lot of worlds out there. Star Swirl the Bearded discussed a few in his memoirs."

"Any that sound like this one?" I asked.

"I don't think so. Maybe to find out more about the world, you could see if there's something different. Like, _glaringly different._ "

"That's a good idea," I said. "Thanks so much, Twilight."

"Welcome." Twilight made a face, but it came out cute instead of bratty. "I wish I could have come."

"You'd be bored. Almost everything looks the same, as I said. It's rather unnerving. As Princess Celestia said, something is a bit off here. I can't put my hoof on what, though. You're still a princess here, apparently. Not Trixie." I remembered the portrait of an alicorn Trixie in stained glass on that other King Sombra's castle gallery.

Twilight smirked a little. "Too bad we didn't meet her. Princess Trixie."

"Please. She may be a princess there, but she's probably as insufferable as the Trixie we know. The one who stupidly put on that amulet and got possessed for her trouble?!"

Twilight said something, but her voice came out muffled. Her image in the mirror also rippled.

"Twilight? I can't hear you!"

"Connection...breaking," She replied. "Whatever...between worlds...in flux..." Her image faded.

After a few minutes of futilely staring into the mirror and trying to summon Twilight again, I sighed and stuck the mirror back into my saddlebag. The sun shined brightly through the plate glass windows of the room.

At least she managed to give me an idea of what to do next.

I gazed out at Ponyville, in its usual calm self. Ponies, more so than last night, trotting to and fro. I recognized quite a few faces. Derpy delivering mail. That weird earth pony with an hourglass Cutie Mark and green tie who calls himself Doctor. Doctor what? Mayor Mare carrying a bunch of papers in her mouth. Lyra and Bon-Bon sitting on a bench eating ice cream.

My gaze fell to the horizon. I expected to see rainbows shining off the crystalline surface of Twilight's castle, but...it wasn't there.

"OK, there's something glaringly different," I said more or less to myself. I scanned what I could see of Ponyville again. There it was. The roof of the Golden Oaks Library, with nary a scorch mark. It didn't look like it had been repaired. More like nothing had ever happened to it. So does that mean Tirek didn't destroy it here? Time to look a little closer. I brushed my mane and tail, replaced my hat and ribbons, grabbed my saddlebags and put up the 'please make up the room' placard.

The lobby was empty. A white pegasus mare was occupying the front desk. She had a golden mane and blue eyes like Saturday Sky's. She looked a little prissy in appearance. I say that because her mane was done up in a fancy updo. Not a strand out of place. And she had a hooficure. One even more recent than Rarity's, it looked like. Her Cutie Mark was similarly fussy: a heart-shaped wreath of pink roses. And her feathered wings were perfectly preened.

She looked surprised to see me. "Oh?"

I set the key on the desk. "I'm checking out."

She regained her composure. "Yes, of course." She took the key in her mouth and hung it up on the wall. "Anything else you require today?"

"No," I said, leaving.

A quick run to the library. I knocked on the door.

The door opened. A familiar looking dragon was standing there. I say familiar because he was purple and green like Spike, but he was about a foot taller.

Oh, no. No. No. No.

"Spike?" I said.

"Yes?" He said. His voice was slightly deeper than Spike's, too.

"Good, you still recognize me." I said. Great. Maybe he can shrink back. "Just...step away from your hoard."

"Hoard?" He asked. "What hoard?"

"Spike, you know me," I said.

"Of course, Applejack," Spike said. He thought a moment. "Oh! You must have gotten a concussion! You should come in and lie down."

I stopped. "Wait. You're being nice to me."

"You're my friend," Spike said. "Why wouldn't I be nice to you?"

"But you're being all greedy, and that's why you're big, and if you don't stop now, you'll just get bigger and bigger and you almost killed Rarity the last time..."

Spike blushed. "Yes, my birthday...but this is my normal size."

"It is?" I asked.

"Yes," Spike said. "Dragons tend to grow in bursts. I went to bed one night as a baby in Canterlot when Twilight was still a filly, and woke up as a toddler. And before we moved here to Ponyville, I got another burst. I mean, you saw a dramatic example of how dragons can grow on my birthday, right? I know it's not natural for ponies, who grow very gradually. And frankly, that kind of rapid growth is probably not good for a dragon either. But enough about that. It was embarrassing enough when it happened. Let's talk about you. Did you come from Manehattan?"

"Manehattan?" I repeated.

He frowned at me. "You didn't check yourself out of the hospital against medical advice, right? I know you're dedicated, Applejack, but you need to take it easy."

"No, I didn't check myself out..." OK, that was true. I've never been admitted to a hospital, so how could I check myself out? I wasn't even born in a hospital. My mother delivered me in the family barn.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked.

"Sure," I said. "Sorry I got a little worried when I saw you."

He shrugged. "Yeah, I'm sorry I haven't been more considerate. You got really banged up in that fight with Tirek. Not surprising your memory's a bit fuzzy." He gestured inside and I walked in. He closed the door behind me.

The library looked the same as...ours did, before Tirek destroyed it. And Tirek obviously existed here, and we fought him. So why didn't the castle spring from the chest in the Tree of Harmony? Did we not get that final key? Is that it?

"Spike?" A feminine voice called. A mare entered the main foyer. A rather familiar one.

I gasped. "It's you!"

To Be Continued


	2. Chapter 2

There I was, in a reasonable facsmile of Twilight's old library. Facing down a pony from my past. I had every confidence I could beat her in a fair fight, but she was full o' magic.

And I was trying to get used to a larger than normal Spike, who didn't seem to be alarmed at the power-mad and dangerous unicorn in the room.

"Humor her, Sunset," Spike said. "She had a concussion."

I backed from her, pressing my back to the bookshelves. This wasn't good. I never formally met Sunset Shimmer, after all. I only saw her briefly, when I was chasing her through the halls of the Crystal Palace. But even without Spike's identification, it was her. Pale orange coat, mane of deep red and golden yellow, aqua eyes. A Cutie Mark of a brilliant sun that seemed to blaze, threatening to sear any who gazed upon it.

Sunset approached, then...sank to her knees. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!" She cried. "I thought you'd never wake up!"

"Why are you...?" I replied, confused. "You're concerned about me? Shouldn't you be worried?!" What? I'm not a threat? Because I'm not Twilight? Ugh, I knew she was stuck-up, but Twilight assured me she had gotten a lot better. Maybe Twilight just didn't want to talk bad about her.

"You really don't remember?" Spike asked. "Sunset came here to study. Before this whole snafu with Tirek. She felt it would help make up for what she did...back then. No offense, Sunset."

"None taken," Sunset said, giving a somewhat resigned yet oddly serene smile.

"I don't remember that..." I said. "What about the Sirens?"

"The ones Star Swirl the Bearded faced long ago?" Sunset asked. "Wow. You really know your history. I didn't peg you as interested in that stuff. I barely even remember that tale, and I was the Princess' student for a while. You always surprise me."

"But they showed up in your world!" I protested feebly.

Sunset pressed her hoof to my forehead. "You aren't running a fever. It must be the trauma."

I sighed. "Maybe we should just start at the beginning. What trauma was this?"

"Maybe you should sit down for this," Sunset gestured to a table and chairs. I sat in one. Sunset levitated a teapot that was resting on the table and poured some tea into a cup, which she set in front of me.

I didn't sip it. I still didn't trust her.

"The Elements of Harmony..." Sunset began. "I suppose that's where it begins and ends. Although Twilight wished for me to remain in the human world and her parallel friends were willing to accept me as a peer, no, as a friend, I felt like I couldn't force that on them. I had seen myself in a mirror, and it wasn't pretty. I wanted to make myself worthy of being a friend to the girls whose lives I casually ruined. So I returned to Equestria. Twilight graciously allowed me to live here. I've been here ever since, studying up on magic. Learning how to be social. Helping Twilight whenever I can. I haven't met with Princess Celestia yet. I still don't know the right words to say. Twilight told me not to force them."

"I see," I said. Could this be the turning point? Assuming this world was running parallel to mine. Up until Twilight went to the human world and saved Sunset from herself. In our world, she stayed there. In this one, she came back to Equestria? "Wait. Where is Twilight?"

Sunset and Spike looked at each other.

"She's gone," Spike said. "She said she was going to do some research at the Castle of the Two Sisters. But then she didn't come back, and so I went to look for her. I found a note that said she was going to investigate a way to wake you up. And that she had to go alone."

"She could be in trouble!" I cried.

"We've looked for her," Sunset replied. "All over. Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie have searched all of Equestria and even beyond. No trace of Twilight."

"Well, she didn't just disappear!" I snapped.

"There's just one place we haven't searched," Spike added. "The Deep Dark."

"The Deep Dark?" I repeated. "What the hay is that?"

"But you must have passed the entrance dozens of times!" Spike protested.

"No one really knows what the Deep Dark is," Sunset explained. "No one who's gone there has ever come back."

Wait. I passed the entrance dozens of times? The Deep Dark. Could it be the inky blackness I went through between my Equestria and here?

"Something on your mind?" Sunset asked.

"I don't think Twilight's in this Deep Dark place," I said. The Twilight of this world would have recognized my voice as I was hollerin' for help. And come running. But...nothing.

In retrospect, the air did feel heavy back there. Like there was someone in all that darkness, but I think I'd have noticed Twilight's presence.

"So how much do you remember about the fight?" Sunset asked.

"Fight?" I repeated.

"I'll be frank," she said. "Something has always bothered me about what happened. I can't quite put my hoof on it, though."

"What happened, exactly?" I asked. "You keep mentioning Tirek."

"Yes," Spike said. "He started sucking up magic like a slurpee."

And torched this library, but apparently that didn't happen here. Or Twilight had it rebuilt exactly the way it was. Whatever.

"Twilight and the Element Bearers knew they couldn't get close to Tirek, otherwise he'd absorb their power, and then it'd be over," Sunset explained. "So Twilight decided to look for a way to use the Elements from a distance. She came across an ancient amplification technique. It would allow the six Bearers to absorb the Elements of Harmony, and let their energy resonate with your hearts," Sunset explained. "This is known as a Hyper-resonance Event. And it worked."

"Like a charm," Spike added. "Tirek never knew what hit him. All the stolen magic flew out of him. It was beautiful! But then...something happened. I guess the blast of magic was so powerful that you guys couldn't contain it for more than a few minutes. Twilight's wings got broken and she fell. Princess Celestia caught her. But everyone else was found passed out on the ground. I ran to Rarity and she stirred. And then Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Pinkie woke up. But you...you wouldn't wake up. They took you to Manehattan General, tried all sorts of healing spells. Nothing worked."

"Twilight especially felt horrified," Sunset said. "The hyper-resonance gambit was her idea. But I don't think the Elements can ever hurt ones who truly embody them. I told her, and we got into an argument. She didn't kick me out, but I could tell she was upset. And right after that, she vanished."

Uh oh. If the Applejack here is still in that coma, they're going to figure out I ain't her if somepony contacts somepony at Manehattan General! And that can't be good. And how did she end up in a coma when everypony else was okay? "So if the Elements didn't cause the coma, what did?"

"I don't know," Sunset admitted. "I have an idea that someone took advantage of the fight. That right after the absorption, someone used a discreet miasma attack. You were the closest to that unknown pony, and took the brunt of it. But who could that have been? Tirek would have absorbed any pony's power easily. Miasma spells are notoriously difficult to learn, so it would have to be a very high ranking unicorn wizard."

Wait. How could we absorb the Elements in the first place?! They don't exist anymore! Well, they do. But they're deep within the Tree of Harmony! "How did you get the Elements back from the Tree?"

Both Sunset and Spike looked confused.

"Remember?" I asked. "Discord sowed those Plunderseeds to choke the Tree of Harmony? So to give the Tree of Harmony the power to resist them, we had to return the Elements? And then the chest appeared?"

"What are you talking about?" Spike asked. "Chest? Plunderseeds? This Discord...uh, guy?"

"Discord!" I said. "The spirit of chaos and disharmony. He looks like the love child of a chimera and a dragon and a bunch of other critters I'd rather not think about. Also he has a stupid little goatee. I mean, seriously, who would trust somepony with a goatee, let alone...that?"

"Doesn't a chimera look like the love child of a bunch of beasts by default?" Spike asked. "So wouldn't the love child of a chimera..."

"Not the point," I said.

"I've never heard of such a thing," Sunset said. "Sure he's not a character from a storybook?"

"So neither of you has ever heard of Discord before?" I asked. My head was starting to ache. Again.

Wait. Could the junction have happened earlier? Like...if Fluttershy had failed to change Discord after she swore not to use her Element against him? Uh oh. Without all the Elements, he couldn't be sealed. And if he's not sealed, and not reformed...

Not good. Not good. Not good.

"Applejack?" Spike asked. "Are you okay?"

"Let us help you," Sunset said reassuringly.

"I think the greatest trick Discord has ever pulled is to convince the world he doesn't exist," I said finally. "Somehow he took your memories." He can play with ponies' minds, after all. That bitterness I felt when I woke up from his horrible illusion came back with a vengeance.

"Then how do you remember?" Spike asked. "Did the coma knock loose your immediate memory, but dig up what you forgot?"

"It doesn't quite work like that," Sunset said, making a face. "Next you'll be saying to hit an amnesiac on the head."

"You don't?" Spike responded, sounding genuinely confused.

Sunset groaned. "That's the worst possible thing you can do to an amnesiac! Especially if they lost their memories from head trauma."

As Twilight would say, does my hypothesis hold up to testin'? Discord failed to choke the Tree of Harmony on this side, since we still have the elements and everything seems...okay, for lack of a better term. The only thing that don't seem right is Twilight's sudden absence. If Discord made her disappear, wouldn't he brag about it? Rub it in? Make everyone know the score? Does that make sense?

But then, Discord's whole existence is built on not makin' sense.

And where is Twilight now?

Could she have found another portal and ended up in my world? But then ponies would notice a second Twilight...

Ugh. I hate this.

Sunset said to let her help me. Maybe I should take her up on that. "I've got some confessin' to do."

Spike sprang up. "Sunset! We're late!"

"So we are," Sunset said. "Let's go."

"Go where?" I asked.

"Our meeting with the others," Sunset explained. "Fluttershy's train must have come in by now. Hold on." Her horn glowed.

"Wait!" I cried. There was a flash. And we were in the dining area of Hayburger Haven.

A teleportation spell. Dang, she is good at magic.

Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity were seated at a nearby table. Their eyes widened, like saucers.

"Um...hi, everybody," I said. Then I was glomped.

To be continued


End file.
